You throw the ball. You catch the ball. You hit the ball…Of course, baseball fans know that this line from Bull Durham is far from true, part of the humor of the movie and a huge part of the fun of the game. This blog is a space to talk about baseball, being a baseball fan, all of those things that make the game fun and the Angels, because they make baseball fun for me.

The Bay Area Baseball Extravaganza Concludes with a Trip to AT&T Park

First things first – Welcome back from the All Star Break in style Angels!!! Okay, okay. So the Angels’ All Star Break lasted a little longer than that of most other teams…pretty much until Wednesday, round about the 3rd inning actually. But after a crazy comeback win against the Rangers Wednesday and shutting the Rangers out on Thursday, I think I can cut the Angels some slack. After all, who among us hasn’t experienced “vacation lag”? I know I’m experiencing it this week!

So, about that vacation. We wrapped up the Bay Area Baseball Extravaganza with a visit to the beautiful and luxurious AT&T Park on Monday night to take in the Giants vs. Dodgers game. And if I was late enough to the game that I missed first pitch, so were all of these fine folks. Hmmm…I think L.A. has been unjustly maligned on this point ;) :

Entering AT&T Park through the main Willie Mays gate. Gorgeous! Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

Late for the game? How does this happen on vacation? We went for a bike ride late Monday morning on the Marsh Creek trail in Pittsburgh, CA, along marshes and canals off of San Francisco Bay. It was so beautiful and fun that we didn’t hit the car again until 24 miles and a few hours later. So much for catching batting practice, but darned if we didn’t have a blast:

The Marsh Creek Trail in Pittsburgh, CA. July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

AT&T Park is gorgeous, from the front gates to the seating areas to the view out over the right field all to the tops of ships in McCovey Cove.:

The view over the right field section towards McCovey Cove. AT&T Park. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

My college friend and his partner, Giants fans, both, accompanied us to the game and clued us in to some of AT&T Park’s finer details. For example, I had no idea that the grates in right field are open to the public walk that runs between the stadium and McCovey Cove. Fans strolling by are invited to stand and watch some of the game free of charge. Very cool:

Free view into the stadium, anyone? Quite the cool concept! Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

There is not a bad seat in the house, certainly not our second row seats in the club section just above left field – vacations are for splurges after all! And there are lots of fan friendly touches in the seating sections. Club section ushers politely only allow fans past the doors to their seats in between plays and at bats, so seated fans don’t miss a pitch. In the outfield “bleachers” there are wide, lower concourses in front of the seats, so fans can pass by without blocking anyone’s view.:

The outfield seats at AT&T Park, with plenty of room to walk around. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

If the Coliseum is no frills, AT&T Park is all frills possible. The food is phenomenal and there is quite a diverse selection. And in the club section, there are full bars with actual bartenders! I ordered an Irish coffee to keep the chill away in the later innings, and the bartender wisely never touched the Bailey’s while preparing my drink. Eureka!

One of the many full bars on the club level at AT&T Park. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

Though I was amused to note that for all its frills, AT&T Park is still a mixed use facility. Note that from this vantage, in a different uniform, Cody Ross could be playing goalie:

Cody Ross prepares to run in left field. ross was one of my favorite stories to come out of the '10 Series, out of many great ones from both the Giants and the Rangers. Note the soccer field chalk marks. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

Being on vacation, I was really out of the loop on trade news. Imagine my surprise, when this friendly face appeared on the Jumbotron in Dodger Blue. Welcome back to sunny Southern California, Juan, and best of luck to you!

Former Angel Juan Rivera, the newest Dodger of all. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

When you’re not really cheering for either side, a competitive game is the most fun to watch, and this game was better than the 5 to 0 shutout score would lead one to believe. The Dodgers made a couple of really good plays and had several strong hits, but just couldn’t string any of it together long enough to get on the board. The Giants played very well throughout.:

Aubrey Huff lines out to Matt Kemp in center in the 1st inning. Is it just me, or does Mr. Huff's name sound like some sort of Roger Moore era Bond girl? I jest, but I have aways liked Huff and was thrilled to see him get a ring last season, was thrilled to see him contribute so heavily to the earning of that ring. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...(Seth)

Pablo Savdoval and Nate Schierholtz cross the plate...except Dodgers catcher Rod Barrajas is moving off the field because Aubrey Huff lined out to Matt Kemp in center. The Giants runners will figure it out eventually. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game... (Seth)

James Loney catches the foul pop fly as Chad Billingsley moves to back him up and Cody Ross is out. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...(Seth)

Rod Barrajas takes a big swing. Chris Stewart is catching. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

Nate Schierholtz smacks a double in the 1st inning. Rod Barrajas is catching. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...(Seth)

Nate Schierholtz leads off first while James Loney waits for a possible pick-off attempt. Giants vs. Dodgers, July 18, 2011. Photo by This is a very simple game...

So with all of this wonderfulness, were there any drawbacks AT&T Park? Just one actually, and it really surprised me. I love Giants fans. I went to the Bay Area to stay with and attend the game with two of them. I have rabid Giants fans in my family. I attended playoff parties with scores of them in Paso Robles and count several in their number as friends but, oh my goodness, when they all get together in one large group at AT&T Park, an awful lot of them choose to be dicks. In the club section for crying out loud! Not in the “we all came to get drunk and obnoxious but can’t name more than a handful of players on the team” section. Now I don’t know where the “we all came to get drunk and obnoxious but can’t name more than a handful of players on the team” section is at AT&T Park, but they must have one. All ballparks have one. We certainly do. ;)

I am not some delicate flower that cannot cope with heckling. Hello, how much time do I spend at the ballpark? Cheering. Heckling. Being passionate for your team. All are very important, traditional parts of the game for home fans and visiting fans alike. But isn’t it supposed to stay in the stands? In my experience at the Big A with rival fans and walking through Dodger Stadium and the Coliseum in Angels gear, the concourse, the bathrooms, the food stands, the ticket lines, etc, are all neutral ground, free from any of the fan on fan heckling that may or may not be going on in the seats.

Not so at AT&T Park. Walking through the concourse on the club level, past the carving station, the full bar and other wonders, Seth turned to me with a huge smile and said, Wow, this makes the club level in Anaheim look pretty plain. And he’s right. I love the Big A, but it is nowhere near this luxurious. A random Giants fan heard us and said loudly, that’s because the Angels suck as his friends all nodded and laughed and it wasn’t friendly laughter. Really? We weren’t even talking to him. “Not when they play the Giants…not in 2002.” Well that wasn’t nearly as funny, apparently, and the group of them quickly dispersed.

Random jerks and an isolated incident, right? Well, not for the Dodgers fans in attendance. I saw three separate instances of lone Dodger fans being heckled, and not in a “we’re friends who came together and are giving each other grief” way either, by small groups of Giants fans while we walked to our seats. I saw more instances later. On the concourse! On the club level!! For all I know, this goes on in reverse at Dodgers stadium, outside of the aforementioned “we all came to get drunk and obnoxious…” section. But the impression I got is that some Giants fans are wearing their new World Series title a lot more gracefully than others.

I’m not saying that the Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown mean kids “We’re number one! We’re number one!” vibe ruined my trip to the ball park. I had an amazing time. What I am saying is that amenities are lovely, frills make any experience that much more special, and given the chance to return to AT&T Park again as a baseball fan with no real ties to either team, as I did on this occasion, I would do so in a heartbeat. But as for attending a game as an out of town fan of the visiting team? I’d take the Coliseum over AT&T Park any day.

16 Comments

Awesome! This park is on my bucket list. Heard nothing but great things. Thanks for sharing your experience! And from what I hear, your experience isn’t isolated. The Dodgers/Giants rivalries is one of the more violent ones (as we know via Bryan Stow) and the few die-hard G-men fans I know can be pretty mean (just being honest). I like the Coliseum too but only because every time I’ve been there I’ve been overfilled with Fat Tires.
–Jeff

Thanks Jeff! You should defnitely go if you get the chance. It’s a must have experience for baseball fans I think – and no wave or beach balls. Yay! I know this rivalry is violent, though I do think of the Brian Stow beating as more a factor of the thugs who commtted the crime just being violent (I think they might have done the same thing at another game given the right amount of booze) than about this specifc rivalry. Oh well, if I ever go to AT&T Park for an interleague game, I will just make sure my wit is appropriately sharpened ahead of time. :)

Wonderful pictures. I cannot stand idiot fans!!! Every team has them, but some stick out more than others. The ballpark there looks gorgeous. I would love to go there some day, but for now I’m staying in the midwest.

Ron – Thanks! I would highly recommend a vist when you get the chance, but the midwest is full of it’s own baseball treasures, so I’m sure you have plenty to see closer to home. Next season, I hope to go stay with either one of my cousins near Kansas City and see at game at the K or visit our friends in Cleveland and see a game at Progressive Field.

Very nice pictures Kristin! I had not realized that the Wednesday game with Kershaw and Lincecum was a weekday game. Had I realized it earlier, I might have made the drive with a friend. One of my Dodger fans who works for United, hopped a plane after his shift ended at 9:15 am and went to the game. He is used to the abuse from Giant fans as he said it was worst at Candlestick Park. I had forgotten Rivera was an Angel before until you reminded me.

Thanks Emma! That would have been fun, to run up to San Fran just for the day. I was surprised to see Rivera go to a National League team becuase while his bat is still solid, he is often slow and stiff in the outfield. But he’s a good guy and I hope that he works out for you all. With Kemp’s speed and range in center, maybe Rivera will work out okay in left.

More pics and a great trip in all. I love the Cody Ross photo the best (former Whitecap), and the Charlie Brown reference made me chuckle! Thanks again for sharing your adventures.
–Mike
‘Minoring In Baseball’

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